


The Team

by RoseThorn14



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Age Swap, Alternate Universe - Role Reversal, Anakin Skywalker Needs a Hug, Angst, F/F, F/M, Gen, Human Disaster Anakin Skywalker, Hurt Obi-Wan Kenobi, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Obi-Wan Kenobi Needs a Hug, Padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi, Poor Obi-Wan Kenobi, Role Reversal, Wingfic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-13
Updated: 2020-06-25
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:08:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24700588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoseThorn14/pseuds/RoseThorn14
Summary: Anakin Skywalker hadn't wanted another padawan.Not after how things had ended with Ahsoka.But a small disaster woke him up and made him realise that he needed to properly care for his newly assigned padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi.Hopefully not too much damage was done.----Or my take on the role reversal between Anakin and Obi-Wan mashed with a wingfic because there aren't enough wingfics in this fandom.
Relationships: CC-2224 | Cody & Obi-Wan Kenobi, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Ahsoka Tano, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi & CT-7567 | Rex, Padmé Amidala/Anakin Skywalker
Comments: 109
Kudos: 653





	1. Weird Temples Never Bring Anything Good

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place just over a year into the war, after the end of season 3 and before season 4. The only two arcs from later seasons that have already happened was the Zygerrian arc and the arc where Ahsoka gets wrongfully accused. 
> 
> Palps sees the strong bend forming between the two and sets things into motion a little quicker, organising for one of his lackeys to influence Barriss a lot earlier.

Obi-Wan knew when he wasn't wanted.

In his admittedly short life, he'd had plenty of experience not being wanted by those around him. He'd always found it hard to make friends amongst his clan in the creche. And his visions had inconvenienced the crechemasters, made him a constant problem.

Only Master Yoda, and occasionally Master Windu, had made him feel like he wasn't just something to be gotten rid of. They'd helped him navigate the unforgiving Unifying Force, and Master Windu had even borne some of his questions about lightsaber combat.

That wasn't fair, he supposed. There had been a few older padawans that hadn't seemed to annoyed by his presence, and Master Drallig had even told him that he was the best student in his class.

And he'd had a few friends like Bant and Garen, but Garen was older and had been picked as a padawan two years ago and Bant wasn't in his clan.

But, nevertheless, Obi-Wan had had a lot of practice at determining when he wasn't wanted.

And he could tell he wasn't wanted on the Resolute.

Really, he would have had to be an idiot not to.

His Master didn't speak to him outside missions and the troopers were barely any better.

Of course, Obi-Wan knew why. He'd been assigned to them less than two months after Padawan Tano had left the temple. Several times he'd caught troopers, particularly Captain Rex, almost call him by her name.

If Obi-Wan was in their situation, he wouldn't want him there either.

So, Obi-Wan tried to stay as much out of the way as possible. He only spent large amounts of time out of his room when he had to complete his duties as a commander, as the regs recommended, and for missions. He made sure to get up early so that he could get a table alone and be out of the mess before it got busy and he either did the same thing for dinner or stayed up late to grab a little bit of food before he went to bed. He'd had a similar tactic in the temple to avoid many of his agemates, especially Bruck. Over the past few years, particularly as things got more busy and Garen left, he'd become used to skipping lunch, and, if needed dinner. He'd learnt how to eat enough at breakfast to tide him over for the rest of the day.

The only other times he left his room were to practice his katas in the training rooms, and even then, he made sure to not use Jar'Kai. He kept his second saber firmly in a box under his bunk, only to be taken out in the privacy of his own quarters. In the year leading up to him finally being put on the padawan roster, Padawan Tano and Master Drallig had been instructing him in the beginnings of Jar-Kai. Ahsoka had always taken at least a few hours when she was at the Temple between battles to train with him, and she had always been cheerful with him.

He hated that he was sent to replace her.

Obi-Wan pulled himself out of his thoughts by the chirping of his comm and he put down his stylus.

"You're needed on the Bridge, Kenobi," Master Skywalker's voice floated through his comm. "The Council has assigned us a new mission."

"Yes General Skywalker," Obi-Wan replied. The man responded better when Obi-Wan called him 'General' rather than 'Master'. "I'll be there in five minutes."

Obi-Wan turned off his datapad, which he had been completing his homework from the Temple on and hurried out of his room, smoothing his robes and making sure his lightsaber was secure on his belt before he left.

By the time he got to the bridge, they'd already entered hyperspace, and Master Skywalker was huddled around the huge circular holoprojector, datapad in hand as he no doubt combed through the mission parameters.

Obi-Wan waited silently a few metres away from him, gaze lowered so he didn't accidentally lock eyes with Captain Rex, who was standing across the projector-table.

After a few moments, Master Skywalker lowered his datapad.

"There has been reports of droid activity on Stewjon," Master Skywalker announced and Obi-Wan stiffened.

Luckily, no one noticed, and General Skywalker continued on without even looking at him.

"Rumours say that Dooku is there. The Council isn't quite sure why but they think that he might be investigating records old Force rituals that may be housed in some ancient sites on the planet."

Obi-Wan felt himself nodding along. From what he knew of his home world, that sounded about right.

"We'll be rendezvousing at an archaeological research facility, which has a central location between the most powerful temples. From there, we'll set up perimeters around all the sites. Torrent Company and I will stay at the facility and be ready to mobilise if we hear signs of Dooku."

Obi-Wan committed the orders to memory, not bothering to ask about himself. He would just tag along with whatever General Skywalker did as unobtrusively as possible.

Not even a few hours later, Obi-Wan was flittering around the facility, doing whatever little job the researchers asked of him as they sifted through the stacks of information they'd collected about the various artifacts within the temples. At least ten percent of his attention was dedicated to making sure his sleeves didn't ride up and his robes didn't slip at all times which didn't help with the exhaustion he was very quickly becoming used to as a permanent part of his life.

They'd come off a mission with the 212th just a few days ago. They'd spent the week defending a forest planet from droids, Grievous had turned up on the last day before they managed to repel the Separtists, and General Jinn had taken the Maverick to chase him after whilst the 501st took a short break before their next assignment.

General Skywalker hadn't liked being sidelined. It was pretty obvious. Obi-Wan could feel his anger, and they hadn't even formed their Master/Padawan bond yet. That was fine. Masters didn’t need to form a bond with their padawan, and he knew that with the war, they had become less prevalent amongst partnerships as most Jedi often struggled with the emotions around them. However, Obi-Wan had held out hope that he would get a master who wanted to open a bond.

But he wouldn't complain. He was just lucky he had a master, that Master Yoda and the crechemasters had agreed that he would no longer benefit from initiate training and was ready to be assigned as a padawan.

He had enjoyed his time with the 212th. Master Jinn was distant, but had shot the occasional encouraging smile at Obi-Wan, and had even given him a few pointers when he'd found him practicing his katas once. Waxer and Boil had kept him company as often as they could, with Waxer even putting effort into cheering him up. Although, Commander Cody had been Obi-Wan's favourite. The man had encouraged Obi-Wan to shadow him and had taken the time to explain various tactics and decisions made by the generals whenever there was an opportunity and the generals had left them.

He'd gotten a few cuts and bruises from the dozen or so skirmishes he'd been a part of over the course of the week, but he hadn't wanted to clog up medical over injuries that would just heal on their own, so he'd been dodging the Med Wing all week. Hence, making sure his robes didn't slip.

It was the one reg he would break. Otherwise, he focused on being the perfect padawan.

Like he was at that moment. Trying to do everything everyone asked of him.

He was just helping set up a filtering system on one of the researcher's datapads when Master Skywalker's comm went off across the room.

"General Skywalker."

"Dooku's been sighted. He's trying to enter the temple in Section 4C."

Immediately, the Torrent Company jumped into action, and in less than twenty minutes they were getting off their ships in the middle of the forest, a senior field archaeologist in tow to translate the runes and make sure they didn't accidentally set off any traps.

One of the sentries materialised out of the trees, dropping down by them.

"The wall over there disappeared into the ground, and Dooku went inside," he reported. "He had five guard droids with him but I stayed back like you ordered, General."

"Good job, Shadow," Master Skywalker said with a nod before he looked to the senior archaeologist. "Can you get this open?"

The archaeologist - Dr Lizra-El Karendra - moved forward, squinting at the runes and symbols covering the stone wall.

She only took a few minutes to find the right panel to press before the wall was falling away.

"We don't go in here very often, and we've never got very deep," she said as they moved in. "It's full of warnings, and many sections require a high level of Force Sensitivity to enter. Our government has never approved our applications asking for Jedi help."

Her voice was strained with giddiness as they started creeping through the Temple.

As they did, Master Skywalker activated his lightsaber to use as a light source and Obi-Wan followed his example, keeping half an eye on the symbols on the walls as they passed them by. Like all initiates, he had done research into his home planet, and he'd taken particular interest into the ancient runes and symbols found in the many temples around Stewjon, all of them telling stories of a time and culture long forgotten.

Master Skywalker looked around at the intricate carvings, pausing as his eyes rested on an image of a humanoid with huge wings sprouting from their back.

"What's that?"

Before Obi-Wan could stop himself, he was answering, his eyes trained on another carving of a similar figure.

"They're angels," he murmured, holding back a flinch as everyone's eyes snapped to him.

"That's right," Dr Karendra complimented, shooting him an approving smile before she gazed around at the carvings. "Stewjoni Angels are one of the most common symbols seen throughout our temples. Though there aren't usually quite so many as this."

She was broken out of their musings as they approached a fork in the road.

"This passage wasn't here before," she informed them, gesturing to the path to the left.

"Then we know which way we're going," Master Skywalker announced, leading the way forward.

Obi-Wan frowned as he stepped over the threshold, something raising the hairs on the back of his neck as the Force whispered warnings around them.

He made sure to only stay a pace behind Master Skywalker.

"I have a bad feeling about this, General," Obi-Wan murmured, just loud enough for him, and Captain Rex, who was on Obi-Wan's other side, to hear.

Master Skywalker shot a glare back at him.

"Quiet, Commander Kenobi," he ordered. "It's just nerves."

Obi-Wan pressed his lips together, trying not to show just how much that stung.

He ducked his head, keeping his eyes trained on the wall as he felt the captain's gaze fall on him. The feeling didn't go away. In fact, it only grew.

Abruptly, Dr Karendra stopped walking.

"This is unusual…" she muttered.

"What is it?" General Skywalker asked, tensing as he readied himself for a fight.

"Well, these aren't warnings per say," she explained, squinting as her hands trailed over a few of the carvings. "Just, anticipations. There's something up ahead."

"Oh joy," Fives muttered. "Dooku found something."

"Let's keep moving," General Skywalker commanded, voice firm and leaving no room for argument. "Whatever Dooku's planning, it can't be good and it's our job to stop it."

Without a word, Torrent Company continued on until they rounded a bend in the tunnel and saw it open up into a room up ahead. As they got closer, Obi-Wan saw that the carvings in the circular room were glowing.

The Force was practically roaring now, filling his ears with thunderous crashes.

General Skywalker, Captain Rex, Jesse and Fives stepped in first. Suddenly, Obi-Wan heard a tumultuous cracking, like lightning, and his vision was overtaken by the image of the four men being struck by a light shooting in from the walls and reducing them to dust.

He lunged forward, sprinting out in front of them as he shoved them back into the passageway with the Force.

And then his whole body was being lit up in agony as his back was split open.

\----

"Kenobi!" Anakin snapped as he rolled to his feet, ready to lunge at the brat that had just kriffing flung him out of the room.

However before he could even begin to move forward, the space was being lit up in a blinding light.

Anakin blinked dots out of his vision, in time to hear the beginnings of the boy's screams. Kenobi was surrounded by a ball of light so bright Anakin couldn't see him.

Instinctually, Anakin moved forward to help him only to stopped by Dr Karendra's hand on his shoulder.

"Don't!" she exclaimed. "You'll both die."

Anakin's ripped his eyes away from the sphere of light. "What about him?"

"He'll either live or die," the doctor replied. "It depends on what ritual he got trapped in. But there's nothing you can do about it now. If you interfere, it will only end badly."

Anakin looked back at the kid, fisting a hand in his hair. The screams had died out, but Anakin could still feel the waves of pain wash over him through the Force, even though he hadn't formed a bond with the boy.

Rex stepped up to Anakin, eyes also trained in front of him as he spoke.

"The others have reported in. There's no way around, and Dooku escaped, but he only had one guard droid with him."

Anakin could barely bring himself to care.

"Then I guess we have to wait."

Rex nodded grimly. "I guess so, sir."

Anakin, Rex, the other clones and Dr Karendra stood vigil over the boy.

After what could have been minutes or could have been hours the light began to fade. It almost looked as if it was being absorbed into the boy's body.

It shrunk, taking shape across his back until finally the room lost its glow.

And all that was left was Obi-Wan Kenobi's unconscious form with the addition of two huge wings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have three ways to end this fic and will probably end up writing two of them. 
> 
> The Bad Place (which will probably still end up being both slightly better than canon and more horrifying than canon)
> 
> The Good Place (which is basically the best possible scenario)
> 
> and The Medium Place (which is somewhere in between but will lean more towards the Bad Place).
> 
> I'm probably only going to write the first two because I'm not super passionate about the the Medium Place.
> 
> Comment about which ending your curious about.
> 
> Also, there probably won’t be much shipping in this since obi-wan is pretty young. However, I am intending for the war to last longer in this fic and for obi-wan to be 17 or 18 by the time it’s over. Expect canon pairings and maybe a bit of shipping for Ahsoka and much Much later for Obi.
> 
> What do you want to see?


	2. Shameless Angs and Hurt/Comfort

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath - basically the chapter title says it all.

Anakin stared at his padawan, who was lying on a bed in the middle of one of the training rooms. The med wing had been too small for him to comfortably spread his wings.

Not that he had yet.

Obi-Wan hadn't woken up in over a day.

The medics had needed to strap three beds together just to make sure Obi-Wan didn't fall off. If he were to fully extend his wings, a lot of them would hang off the beds.

The wings were massive with a span of just under fifteen feet. The majority of them were occupied with various shades of metallic copper. Although, the scapulars and axillaries - the small fine feathers covering near the point where his wings connected to his back - were a brilliant, almost glowing gold, and the secondary feathers on the inside of his wing were a mix of pale gold and silver whilst the tops of his wings and the very edges of his large primary feathers faded into a darker, reddish bronze.

They somehow simultaneously looked like both the shiniest metals and he smoothest liquids, and they were some of the softest things that Anakin had ever felt.

Although, the only time he'd felt them was in the temple, when he'd held Obi-Wan's unconscious form.

Anakin hadn't been able to physically carry Obi-Wan out of the temple, needing to use the Force to lift his body up.

Once they'd gotten back to his ship, they'd immediately commed the Council, who had called Master Che.

The Twi'lek healer had given Anakin a list of instructions on how to give basic care to the newly changed Obi-Wan, before ordering him to return to Coruscant immediately so that she could evaluate him.

Now, they were one day into their four day journey, with Kix having spent most of his time running tests on Obi-Wan's wings, using hand-held x-rays and carrying out blood tests as well as more than a dozen other medical procedures that Anakin couldn't identify.

Anakin ran over the list of instructions in his head as he watched his very young padawan.

Force, he was only thirteen. And Anakin hadn't even known that until Master Che had told him.

His eyes burned and his cheeks were hot as shame coursed through him.

He'd been pretending the boy hadn't been on the ship, and he knows most of the clones had been avoiding him as well. Before, it had been too painful to look at him. All he could see was Ahsoka. His Snips. Who had looked so crushed before she walked away from him forever.

And with that pain had come the familiar rage, so scorching that Anakin couldn't bear to be around him.

Now, though, there was only a mix of guilt and shame, as he remembered feeling the echoes of the boy's pain in the Force.

He had saved their lives. Dr Karandra had read the runes in the circular room where the ritual had taken place. Apparently, the ritual would only have worked on a native Stewjoni Force Sensitive, and would have killed anyone else that had activated it. Three piles of ashes, which were identified as the only remnants of Dooku's assassin droids, were evidence that her assessment had been correct.

Force, this was a mess. He'd had his padawan for almost two months now. He really should know more about him.

As Anakin sighed out frustratedly, Obi-Wan began to stir. The boy, who had previously been lying on his back, turned onto his side and curled up, his left wing draping over his body and tightening around him like a cocoon.

Anakin rushed forward as the wing threatened to tear out the IV connected to Obi-Wan's arm.

"Hey, kiddo, don't do that."

Obi-Wan stilled for half a second before he shot up into a sitting position.

This movement was immediately followed by a yelp and Anakin winced, seeing the kid pull some feathers out of the inside of his right wing in his haste.

Obi-Wan's eyes widened as his left wing slowly bent around his body to hover in front of his face. He reached a hand out and touched it with his hand, flinching as he did.

Anakin could see the boy's breathing pick up. Obi-Wan shifted freeing his right wing from under him, which then proceeded to join the left wing in flittering and shaking, feathers ruffling.

"Get Kix!" Anakin ordered quietly to Fives, who had volunteered himself for guard duty on Obi-Wan.

"What's happening?" Obi-Wan asked, his voice shaking. "What are these?"

His shoulders hunched as he pressed his hands to his eyes, "Oh Force, why does it hurt?"

Anakin rushed forwards, climbing onto the bed grabbing Obi-Wan's hand and placing it on his chest.

"Breathe with me, Obi-Wan," he murmured, forcing his voice to be as gentle as possible as he cleared his mind of everything but calm reassurance. It was a state that he so desperately tried to achieve during meditation, but almost always failed to.

However, the conviction that he needed to do this to help the scared, vulnerable child in front of him allowed him to banish every emotion that could harm the boy.

He exaggerated his breathing as he projected his calm towards Obi-Wan, reaching out in the Force and finally, finally creating the bond between them so that it would be more effective.

Obi-Wan froze.

His breathing slowly levelled out and he tentatively spread his presence, prodding at the bond carefully, and sending a dizzying rush of joy down it when he found it there.

"Thank you," the boy whispered. "I'm sorry."

His wings balled up behind him, rubbing anxiously against each other and Anakin held back a wince. One of the things on Master Che's list had said something about making sure his feathers stay smooth. That motion was making them more ruffled and out of place with every second.

"Why are you sorry, little one?" Anakin asked, still making the effort to keep his voice quiet.

Obi-Wan ducked his head, his cheeks heating up.

"I'm being a bother. I didn't stop you."

Anakin's gut twisted and he reached out to grab Obi-Wan's shoulder. "You saved us, padawan. I should be the one apologising."

Obi-Wan's head jerked upwards. His eyebrows were furrowed and his lips were pursed in obvious confusion.

"I didn't listen to you," Anakin said, looking at him seriously. "And you got hurt because of it. I am very sorry, Obi-Wan."

He opened their bond so that Obi-Wan could sense the earnestness of his words and a shudder wracked Obi-Wan's body. His face screwed up as if he was trying not to cry.

Anakin swallowed back his own emotion and gathered the boy in his arms, hands awkwardly avoiding his wings, which were still shifting against each other behind his back, though they weren't as tightly curled into it now.

Obi-Wan started shaking as soon as Anakin enveloped him and Anakin made hushing noises against his stifled sobs. Force, had the boy gotten a hug since he left the Temple? Had he even been touched in a positive way?

A renewed wave of conviction smacked into him, motivating him to abide by his and Rex's pact to watch over Obi-Wan and monitor him more closely.

After a few minutes, Obi-Wan pulled away, rubbing at his eyes.

"Thank you, master. I'm sorry for being a bother. I'm all better now."

Anakin frowned. "I thought you said it hurt?"

Obi-Wan looked down. "It's getting better, almost gone now."

"I call banthashit."

Once again, Obi-Wan's attention snapped upwards, his eyes widening.

"The ritual tore up the skin on your back and Master Che said that your wings will ache for a few hours before your mind adjusts to two new limbs."

Obi-Wan's shoulders slumped and his wings lowered so they were resting behind him in a dejected pile of metallic feathers.

Anakin didn't know what the boy was going to say to that, as they were interrupted by the arrival of Kix, Rex trailing behind him.

"Good, you're awake," he said, striding up to Obi-Wan.

He straightened the IV cord, which had become twisted whilst Obi-Wan was panicking.

"How are you feeling?" Kix asked.

Obi-Wan shrugged, his wings lifting up with the movement of his shoulders. "Fine."

Kix fixed him with a hard stare. Obi-Wan squirmed, his wings rubbing together yet again.

"Hey," Kix interjected, voice sharp. "Don't do that."

Obi-Wan's body froze.

"What?"

"Don't rub your wings together like that. It ruffles the feathers."

Obi-Wan glanced back, eyes widening. The wings stopped moving.

He faced them again. "Sorry. I didn't know I was… I'm don’t know how… I'm not used to…"

Kix's expression softened.

"Here, let's spread those out. General Che said you should stretch them regularly."

Obi-Wan frowned. "I'm not sure how…"

Anakin shifted into a cross legged position on the bed, catching Obi-Wan's eyes.

"It's okay," Anakin murmured, thinking over how he difficult adjusting to his mechani-hand could be when he put it on for the first time after a while.

"I want you to relax your wings for me, Obi-Wan," he said, making sure to keep his voice light and soothing. "Can you do that for me?"

Obi-Wan took a deep breath, closing his eyes. His wings started to lower.

"That's right, Obi-Wan. You're doing well."

"I'm going to stretch your wing out," Kix informed gently, reaching out a hand.

As soon as it brushed feathers, Obi-Wan flinched back, his wings immediately tensing again.

"Sorry," Obi-Wan murmured. "I didn't mean to."

The boy cringed inwards, ducking his head.

"It's alright, Obi-Wan," Anakin murmured, eyes flitting to Rex as he got an idea.

"Is it okay if Rex holds your back still?"

Rex shot a startled glare at Anakin whilst Obi-Wan swallowed.

"This needs to happen?" he asked, voice quiet.

"Yes. Master Che said you had to stretch your wings out."

"It's going to hurt more?"

Anakin's heart twisted. "Yes, but only because you haven't stretched them before and your muscles are cramped. The aching will stop soon when your brain gets used to them."

Hopefully.

Obi-Wan nodded, pressing his lips together.

"Okay."

"Okay?"

"Captain Rex can do it."

Anakin jerked his head at Rex, who shifted uncomfortably before he walked around to Obi-Wan's back. Anakin helped the boy shuffle backwards so he was sitting near one edge of the bed and was in reach of Rex's arms.

Anakin noticed that the boy's fists were clenched in the blankets in front of him and Anakin gently lifted one of them, allowing it to latch onto his prosthetic hand whilst he began to run gentle circles into the boy's forearm with his flesh hand.

Obi-Wan took a deep breath and relaxed his wings enough to give Rex a free opening at his back.

"Okay, kid, I'm going to hold you now."

The kid bowed his head and nodded. Rex seemed to think about it for a moment, before he hooked one arm over Obi-Wan's shoulder, curling across Obi-Wan's chest and locking his other arm around Obi-Wan's waist.

Kix approached the boy's left wing again, narrating his movements in soft murmurs.

When he touched the wing, Obi-Wan instinctively jerked again, but was unable to twist out of Kix's grip since Rex's hold on him was too strong.

Anakin made hushing noises, bowing his head forward so his forehead was pressing against Obi-Wan's hair. He sent calming waves through the bond, enveloping Obi-Wan's Force signature in his own like Qui-Gon used to do for him after nightmares.

"I'm going stretch your wing out now," Kix informed him. "I know it's going to hurt, but I want you to focus on how your muscles feel and try and think about stretching them yourself."

Obi-Wan murmured an affirmative and Anakin felt Obi-Wan's hand tighten around his prosthetic.

And then Kix started moving, slowly walking to the side, the end of Obi-Wan's wing in his hand. Obi-Wan squirmed, letting out a whimper before his free hand jerked up to his mouth, stifling it.

Obi-Wan continued to smother his pained whines until Kix stopped moving about seven feet away. The medic made low soothing sounds in the back of his throat as he rubbed across the muscles in the wing and Obi-Wan shuddered in Rex's hold, before going limp, making Rex hold him up.

"You're doing so well," Kix praised, gently lowering Obi-Wan's wing so that it hung limply, much of it drooping off the side of the bed and then moved to the other side.

They repeated the process for the other side, and Anakin gently squeezed Obi-Wan's arm as his right wing slumped to the ground.

"Good job, little one," he murmured as Obi-Wan once again went limp in Rex's arms, panting heavily.

Rex stood still, letting Obi-Wan hang against his arms.

Eventually, Obi-Wan lifted his head, rubbing at his eyes with his free hand.

"How do you feel?" Anakin asked.

"Better," Obi-Wan murmured.

When Rex gently let go of him, Obi-Wan sagged forward, using the hand that wasn't held by Anakin to support him.

"Can you try and move your wings?" Kix questioned.

Obi-Wan sucked in a breath, and nodded, closing his eyes once again.

For a few moments, nothing happened. Then, a shudder rippled through his body as his wings jerked upwards. He whined, his arms shaking before he moved the new appendages more slowly.

Obi-Wan gently flapped his wings, his jaw gradually unclenching as he got used to the sensation.

"How's that?"

The boy blinked his eyes open at Kix's question.

"It feels weird," he answered before breaking off with a grimace. "I'm sorry. I don't know how else to describe it."

"That's okay," Anakin assured him, squeezing his hand comfortingly.

The wings twitched outwards, and Rex, who had been moving around the beds, wasn't able to dodge out of the way in time, one of the wings hitting him and sending him stumbling back a few steps.

Obi-Wan let out a yelp and jerked it upwards, the feathers on his back ruffling, a fine rippling wave disturbing their smooth waters.

"Sorry," he whimpered, before taking a deep breath.

"Please don't touch them again," Obi-Wan's voice was small and subdued as he pleaded quietly.

"Of course," Anakin replied.

He reached out and cupped the young boy's head, pulling it gently forward until their foreheads were touching.

"We're going to help you through this, padawan."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How are you guys liking it?
> 
> I noticed that most of the votes went to the good place ending.
> 
> I will probably write both the good place and the bad place endings as I am equally invested in both (though as a writer, I'm creatively intrigued by the bad place ending, I must say)
> 
> Thank you for all your kind comments! I loved them.


	3. Off Balance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Obi-Wan's life is weird.
> 
> The least angsty chapter so far.

Obi-Wan breathed a sigh of relief when they touched down at the Temple.

Things had been _weird_ over the past few days. And he wasn't just talking about the two limbs he'd recently acquired.

General Skywalker - no, _Master Anakin,_ that's what he'd asked him to call him - had spent far too much time with him. Neither him nor Kix had let him leave the training room that he'd woken up in for a whole day, despite the fact that, true to his master's word, the pain had faded after only a few hours. Even after he was released, Master Skywalker had told him to 'take it easy'.

He'd attempted to go back to his usual routine the morning after he was finally released, to no avail. It was impossible for him to unobtrusively slink towards the Mess Hall in the early hours. Usually he could either dodge the skeleton crew that was assigned to man the Resolute during its night cycle or they'd ignore him as he quietly made his way through the ship. However, this time, he could feel eyes following him as he walked, and it was almost impossible for him to tuck away into shadows or duck down halls.

In addition to making it impossible to blend into anything, his wings also kept him off balance, severely impacting his agility. Every time he tried to make a sharp turn, he would find himself stumbling, or his wings crashing into _something_ whether it be a wall or a droid or a cart. They were always in the way.

By the time he actually got to the Mess Hall, Obi-Wan's cheeks were burning and his stomach was churning. This early in the morning, there was no one actually serving the food and Obi-Wan had to manually warm the ration bar he'd grabbed from the packets in the front at one of the heating stations. He knew that the flavouring packets were getting low, and that they didn't really have enough to last the final few days of their journey, so he elected to just have the slightly mushy bar without flavouring. His tongue was too leaden to taste much anyway and they'd run out of his favourites a dozen rotations ago.

He took longer to eat than usual, his mind foggy from tiredness. He'd gotten even less sleep than normal the night before, finding it impossible to find a comfortable position on his narrow bunk. One of his wings was either pinned beneath his body painfully or too cramped as it was pushed against the wall. Eventually, he had just taken his blanket and the thin mattress which lay on top of the metal bench that was his bed to the floor. Even then, Obi-Wan had tossed and turned for a while in an attempt to find the right position before his mind faded to darkness.

By the time he had managed to clear his head properly, the hall was more crowded than it usually was when he left. Cursing himself silently, Obi-Wan quickly deposited his tray on the cleaning rack and attempted to slip out of the room, his head ducked and his wings tucked as tightly against his back as he could physically make them.

He'd barely gotten a few steps out of the room before someone was stepping into his path. He glanced up, automatically straightening and assuming a more professional posture, though his wings stayed stiffly coiled against his back, forcing Obi-Wan to lean forward a bit to stay standing.

"Hey, kid," Captain Rex had greeted him lightly. "What are you doing?"

Obi-Wan felt his wings shift anxiously and his cheeks warmed. How was he supposed to be a proper Jedi if he couldn't even control the movement of two of his limbs?

"I was going to return to my room and complete the paperwork for my commander duties as well as catch up on my homework."

He'd fallen behind on the schedule he'd set for himself. He couldn't expect to have finished learning Twi'leki and Mando'a in the next two months if he didn't do the modules.

Captain Rex frowned slightly. "Have you already eaten?"

Obi-Wan nodded eagerly. "Yes sir."

He straightened even further only to find himself wobbling backwards.

He threw both his hands out as he compensated his loss of balance by leaning forwards, flailing as he tried not to fall over. Captain Rex reached forward and grabbed his arm with one hand and his shoulder in the other, steadying him.

Obi-Wan felt his entire face and neck burning. He just knew that practicing his katas was going to be awful.

"You alright?"

Obi-Wan nodded. "Yes, captain."

He swallowed back the embarrassed tears that were threatening to burst out of him.

"I'm just going to go do my work now."

The captain loosened his grip and patted him on the shoulder.

"Okay kid. Don't push yourself."

Obi-Wan nodded again and hurried off, pulling his wings around him and tugging anxiously at the top of his left one.

Later that day, Master Skywalker entered the training room that Obi-Wan had been practicing his katas in. Most troopers were either taking their lunch breaks or on duty, so it was largely empty and the clones that were using the room hadn't tried to talk to Obi-Wan like many of the other troopers had.

The first few times a clone had greeted him, Obi-Wan had frozen and hesitated before returning the pleasantries. He was still working on not jumping in surprise every time he was addressed.

He didn't like this. Everyone was acting strange and Obi-Wan didn’t know how to respond. He'd had a good routine before. He hadn’t minded being able to solitarily carry out his duties. He hadn't.

"What are you doing?" Master Skywalker asked and Obi-Wan stilled.

It took him a second for his brain to get over the shock, but when he did, he snapped to attention, deactivating his saber and replacing it at his side.

"I was just completing a Soresu kata that Master Drallig showed me, Gener - er - Master."

Or, at least, he was trying to. He wobbled every few seconds and almost fell over more than once doing the relatively easy exercise.

He just couldn't seem to find his balance.

"I thought I told you to take it easy?" Master Skywalker questioned, crossing his arms.

Obi-Wan's eyes widened. "Um… I."

"Lunch is almost over but no one's seen you in the Mess."

Obi-Wan didn't know what to say. He never ate lunch.

"I'm not hungry."

Master Skywalker frowned and Obi-Wan could feel their bond twinge in a way that made his stomach churn.

"You need to eat. Master Che said that your caloric intake will need to double now that you have wings."

Obi-Wan gut twisted and he was about to protest again when he hesitated. He'd never complained out loud to anyone on the Resolute before, and this was the first time Master Skywalker had given much attention outside missions. He didn't want to be a problem. There were more important things to worry about.

So, he'd agreed to go with Master Skywalker to the Mess Hall.

After that, he'd noticed that he'd had a shadow at almost all times, mostly members of Torrent Company though a few scouts had also tailed him when he made his way through the ship. There'd even been people following him when he'd gone to get breakfast. Fives had actually sat on his table.

The next day Rex had ambushed him outside the Mess again and invited him to do paperwork together in one of the offices. Master Skywalker had come in to _his room_ and asked him to meditate with him. Obi-Wan had almost gaped in shock. He was just glad he'd replaced his mattress every night so his room had been neat for his unexpected visitor.

Obi-Wan had actually quite enjoyed quietly studying with Rex next to him, his presence had been a nice steady thing for him to focus on instead of the constant background noise of the thousands of men that surrounded Obi-Wan at all times which had constantly hummed on the edge of his awareness. Rex's solid signature hadn't been quite as steadying as Obi-Wan found Cody's but it was still grounding.

Unlike Master Skywalker.

The meditation itself hadn't been entirely unpleasant, if not really successful. Master Skywalker was quite distracting with his choking Force presence that never seemed to settle, and Obi-Wan already had enough trouble achieving the calm trance-like state needed for a proper meditation without his mind being tied to an overwhelming supernova. Before his assignment, Obi-Wan had always meditated in the Room of a Thousand Fountains. He wasn't particularly talented in the Living Force and generally was more competent with machines but even he managed to find immense comfort in the rich hum of energy that flowed through the ancient room.

So, yes, Obi-Wan was glad to be home. And looking forward for the strange attention to finally fade.

He'd never been away from the Temple this long before and he'd missed it more than he could have imagined.

Despite being located in the heart of Coruscant, the Temple was one of the calmest places in the galaxy. Something in the walls created this steadiness in the Force, or maybe it was just a side effect of having so many Jedi in one place for so many years. Regardless, the Jedi Temple was like a pool of water protected by an island in an otherwise crashing sea. One loan patch sunlight in a stormy sky.

The walls of the Jedi seemed to absorb the emotions and chaos of both the city around them and the inhabitants, providing a comforting buffer for Obi-Wan's senses that he'd been sorely lacking. It even helped with the Master/Padawan bond. Truly, Obi-Wan was overjoyed that Master Anakin had made the bond with him, and he seemed to enjoy keeping it mostly open providing a solid presence in the back of Obi-Wan's mind that was reassuring beyond measure. However, Master Anakin was the most powerful Jedi he had ever felt, and standing next to him was kind of like flying way too close to a sun, whilst the bond was like having a too bright spotlight trained on his face at all times.

Being in the Temple was like finally putting on a set of sunglasses, or someone adjusting the settings so that it was comfortingly illuminating instead of distracting.

He wanted to just stand there, in the middle of the hangar and bask in the protective hum that surrounded him.

He wanted to go see which of his friends were at the Temple, and let Bant give him a hug.

He wanted to sit in his favourite spot in the Room of a Thousand Fountains and contemplate what he'd experienced in past two months and he wanted to check in with a few of his teachers to ensure he was adequately completing the work he had been doing in his downtime.

But more than anything, he wanted to disappear into the archives for a few hours, find a dark corner with a lamp where he wouldn't be disturbed and read until he got a headache.

However, Master Anakin turned to him with a slight grimace.

"Sorry, Obi-Wan, but Master Che ordered me to bring you down to the Halls of Healing as soon as we got back to the Temple and I don't feel like being murdered in my sleep."

Obi-Wan's shoulders sagged slightly.

He really didn't want to be poked and prodded for an indeterminate amount of time.

But Obi-Wan didn't complain. He was a good padawan. He was a good commander.

Master Skywalker followed him to the halls of healing, only to be shooed away by Master Che as soon as she'd ushered Obi-Wan into one of the biggest private healing rooms Obi-Wan had ever seen.

"Come back when I com you. Bring your captain and your medic," she ordered before closing the door.

She turned to Obi-Wan, putting her hands on her hips as she looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Now what trouble did you get yourself into this time?"

\------

The tests hadn't been _too_ awful. They had taken much less time than Obi-Wan had feared - just a little under an hour - and Obi-Wan had had the chance to spread his wings out, something he hadn't been able to do much on the Resolute as his room was too small and he hadn't had a chance to go the training rooms since Master Skywalker or one of the troopers interrupted him every time he'd tried to head there. Everywhere else, Obi-Wan attempted to keep his wings as close to his body as possible, and out of the way, for if he relaxed them, they'd drag across the floor behind him or flap backwards and get in someone else's way.

The constant bunching had made both Obi-Wan's wings and back ache, though not nearly as much as when he had first woken up, and it wasn't as bad as it could have been as Kix ambushed him at least once a day and basically frog marched him towards a spacious, barely used conference room and made him stretch his wings as well as do a few exercises.

As always, Master Che had shielded her emotions throughout his check up and hadn't said anything about his results, so Obi-Wan assumed that she hadn't found anything to worry about, even if he had caught her frowning through a reflective surface as she looked at his wings.

When they were done, Healer Che announced that they were going to the Room of a Thousand Fountains and Obi-Wan trailed quietly behind her as she led the way, curling his wings around his body and absentmindedly smoothing a few of the wonky feathers on the inside as he studiously avoided the gazes of anyone they passed, many of the younger ones unable to restrain themselves from gawking.

Healer Che took him to a part of the gardens that he hadn't been before. It was a little secluded with had impossibly high ceilings and was decorated with tall trees and flowers.

Master Anakin, Captain Rex and Kix were already there when they arrived, all three of them looking at Obi-Wan.

"Master Crayle will be here shortly to help oversee your first flight," Master Che informed him and Obi-Wan perked up.

The healer had given strict instructions that Obi-Wan not strain his wings, which had meant that Obi-Wan had been unable to use them for the one thing they were actually useful for.

"Not so fast, young one," Master Che chided. "First I need to preen your wings."

Obi-Wan frowned slightly but didn't say anything as Master Che turned to the men.

"Obi-Wan doesn't have the range of motion to reach the entirety of his wings. So you'll need to know how to preen them as well. You all have done a pretty good job at keeping his feathers straight, but really it requires careful attention at least once a day to keep them in proper health."

Obi-Wan stilled at her claim, his stomach dropping at that. Surely he wouldn't need to waste someone's time _every day_?

Master Che caught his hesitance and levelled Obi-Wan with an unimpressed stare.

"Can you honestly tell me your wings _aren't_ bothering you?"

Obi-Wan frowned. The dizzying aching that had pounded through his head and across his back had faded a few hours after he'd woken up, just like Master Anakin said it would. They'd felt fine after that. But he had felt a slowly growing level of discomfort across his wings over the past few days. It was almost like an itching sensation though he hadn't been able to relieve it by rubbing his wings up against things, in fact, more often than not, only making the feeling worse.

Master Che took his silence and the unconscious twitching of his wings as answer enough, beckoning him over to a stone bench that had a back and gesturing for him to sit on it backwards so that his chest and arms could lean against its back whilst his wings were exposed.

"Now, I'm going to show you all how to properly preen him," she announced, walking over to Obi-Wan.

He tensed involuntarily as she approached, his wings jerking awkwardly.

"I know your instincts are telling you to bolt," Master Che informed Obi-Wan gently. "And I know that last time someone had to touch your wing, it hurt very much, but I'm almost certain that you'll enjoy this."

Obi-Wan breathed out, squashing down the wariness that prickled the back of his neck, his instincts screaming at him to not expose his vulnerable points.

"I know, it's difficult. Your biology and base instincts have altered to be more alert," the blue Twi'lek said. "But you're doing very well. May I please touch your back?"

Obi-Wan swallowed. That's where he didn't want anyone touching.

However, he nodded, clenching his jaw as Master Che ran her hand over his tunic. Threads had altered his whole wardrobe to accommodate his wings whilst he had been out, putting to slits in all his tunics and robes which basically turned them into three panels of fabric held together by a strip around the top which formed his collar. His obi had held them all together so that he didn't feel too exposed but he was looking forward to getting clothes that actually fit from the quartermaster.

His muscles slowly relaxed as nothing bad happened whilst Master Che was touching his back, her hand a warm weight that slowly calmed the automatic panic he was feeling at being so exposed.

"Very good," Master Che murmured. "Can I touch your wings now?"

Obi-Wan nodded again, finding it easier to push away his distress.

Master Che telegraphed her intentions through the Force as she slowly took hold of his left wing, running her fingers through his secondaries and smoothing them out.

That… that actually felt quite nice.

She rubbed gently across his wings, where the shafts of his feathers met skin, causing some sought of release that sent a shudder down Obi-Wan's spine. This was followed by the delightful sensation of a soft brush going through his feathers.

"He will naturally produce this waxy substance that coats his wings in order to waterproof and them, but it doesn't hurt to help it along a bit.

He shouldn't lose his secondary or primary feathers too often. The should all fall out about once a year when he moults, but otherwise they'll only fall out if they become too worn. If a feather breaks, you need to pull it out or it could affect his flight."

The soothing presses paused at a point in the middle of his wing. And then she was massaging _something_ that had Obi-Wan sighing gratefully.

"Doing this to pinfeathers encourages them to emerge quicker from their protective casing and should get the feathers to grow faster," Master Che explained before she did that rubbing thing again to release more wax and coat the young feather in.

Then, her hands drifted closer to Obi-Wan's spine, pausing near the part where his wing started to fade into skin.

"The smaller feathers should shed more often, especially along the scapulars, so you'll need to pay extra attention to them."

Pleasure sparked down Obi-Wan's spine as she ran her fingers thrown them, scratching them and brushing out old feathers. He arched his back into the touches, unable to stop the pleased hum that rose in his throat.

"Does that feel good?" Master Che asked, a hint of humour in her voice that made Obi-Wan blush.

Eventually, he adjusted to the sensation and drooped forward, the soothing strokes of her hand across his wings causing a mellow calm to spread through his body. He was glad for the solid back of the chair to lean on, otherwise he was sure that he would have slumped over.

It took a few moments for Obi-Wan to realise when she had finished. Master Che had needed to squeeze his shoulder and even then Obi-Wan had trouble blinking the drowsiness from his eyes.

"I'm satisfied with the state of your wings," she told him. "Which means that you can go take instruction from Master Crayle."

Obi-Wan was immediately wide awake, his gaze swinging to the avian Jedi Master who must have joined them at some point whilst Healer Che was attending to his wings.

He trilled in greeting at Obi-Wan and walked over to him.

"You look like you have strong wings, young one," he praised and Obi-Wan smiled at him.

The master stood across from him, extending his wings out from his back.

"Now, Padawan Kenobi, can you give your wings a few hard flaps please?"

Obi-Wan nodded, a nervous impulse making him glance back at Master Anakin who smiled and nodded encouragingly.

He closed his eyes, concentrating as he raised his wings before he pulled them down as hard as he could. The first flap lifted his feet a little off the ground and the next two gave him a little bit of height, however, when he stopped, Obi-Wan came crashing down, his knees almost buckling as he barely kept his legs under him.

"Very good," Master Crayle praised and Obi-Wan looked up at him in confusion.

"I did not expect you to fly with those flaps," the master explained. "I merely wanted to gage your strength. Now we can try flying."

Obi-Wan couldn't help the giddy grin that split across his face and Master Crayle projected his own more reserved excitement into the Force, as his beak made it hard for him to show facial expressions that humans would comprehend.

"Bend your knees padawan, and then jump as hard as you can as you flap down, and keep flapping until you gain some height. Like this."

Master Crayle bent his long twig-like legs and extended his black and ivory wings before he launched himself into the air with a few flaps of his wings, gaining a few dozen metres of height in less than five seconds.

"Now you try," he called down.

Obi-Wan hesitated, pursing his lips as his heart twisted in sudden apprehension.

"Don't worry about falling," Master Anakin's voice drifted over and when Obi-Wan looked over at him, he was smiling kindly. "I'll catch you."

The words brought a gently warmth to Obi-Wan's chest and he bent his knees, furrowing his eyebrows in concentration before he jumped up as high as he could as he wrenched his wings down as hard as he could.

Obi-Wan shot into the air and, without even really thinking about it, his wings flapped quickly another few times until he slowed their pace as he drew level with Master Crayle.

He couldn't stop the delighted laugh that bubbled up in his chest, elation charging every centimetre of his body.

He was _flying._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your nice comments! How did you like this chapter?
> 
> There was still a little but of angst because this is Obi-Wan. I know he's a little different to the legends and canon depictions of padawan Obi, but this Obi-Wan has spent the last year growing up within a war environment knowing that he will be fighting in a war, so he becomes serious early. 
> 
> What do you think will happen next?


	4. A Bit From Rex

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rex feels guilty, as he should.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't even really read through this properly, I'm too tired to so, I apologise in advance for any mistakes.

Rex had never seen the kid so happy.

Commander Kenobi's delightfully surprised laughter brought a warmth to his chest as the kid followed the instructions of the avian Jedi. A childlike joy spread through the kid's features as he swooped and soared and Rex felt a smile reflexively pulling at his own features.

It was truly something amazing to watch.

A part of his mind started running away with him as he considered all the ways this could help the 501st and the new battle strategies that they could use on the ground. His stomach turned and he batted those thoughts away, hating them with every fibre of his being.

He shouldn't have to consider the tactical advantages of a kriffing thirteen year old.

Never mind that Rex himself wasn't even that old.

He shared a glance with Kix, both of their smiles wobbling slightly as they both felt the same heavy guilt that had plagued him for the past few days.

Much like their general, the 501st hadn't wanted a new Jedi Commander.

Every single one of them had loved Ahsoka. They'd all resented the way she had left and were not ready for someone to replace her.

So, when the new commander, a small thing, even shorter than Ahsoka had been, hadn't seemed to like speaking to them and was more impassive than they'd ever seen their general or their old commander being, they'd been quick to write him off as one of the many natborns who scorned the clones and didn't think they were worth notice.

They hadn't really considered the fact that a Jedi could be like that before. Every one that they had interacted with previously had treated them all equally to every other living thing. So, when they found a Jedi who acted like most other citizens of the Republic, their anger and scorn had been scorching hot.

If they'd payed attention, they would have seen that the kid was just shy.

Some of the cadets had been like that on Kamino, hell, kriffing Cody talked about as much as the kid.

They shouldn't have been so quick to jump to conclusions.

Because the kid _wasn't_ dismissive of them. The brothers that had actually reached out to Kenobi over the past few days had found him extremely respectful, even if he'd seemed confused by them talking to him. (And wasn't that something that just made Rex feel infinitely worse? That little moment of surprise on the kid's face every time he was addressed, like he was _used_ to just being ignored.) Kenobi was polite and genial when he conversed with them, even if he was far more reserved than the people that Rex usually interacted with. Really, he was almost more like a Jedi than General Skywalker. He certainly had the characteristic reservation.

After about twenty minutes the avian Jedi called it a day. The kid stumbled a bit as he landed, fluttering his wings until he regained his balance.

He was still beaming giddily as he tucked his wings away and Rex marvelled at how the huge appendages could so efficiently fold up.

General Che handed the kid a water bottle and he guzzled it down so fast that the woman needed to gently pull it away from him.

"How was that?" she asked and Kenobi grinned at her.

"Amazing!" he chirped breathlessly before he visibly checked himself.

The commander took a deep breath as he attempted to slow his panting before he straightened up.

"It was very interesting," he said, more restrained.

The healer smiled. "I'm glad, Padawan Kenobi."

She looked up at General Skywalker, Kix and Rex. "I think it's time for lunch. I would like to meet with you in about an hour to further discuss his condition. Though, there's no need for you to come, Padawan Kenobi. I'm sure you have things you'd like to do now that you're in the temple."

The commander, who had wilted a bit at the mention of food (another thing that Rex had to watch out for), nodded dutifully. "Yes, Healer Che, there is."

The healer reached out and squeezed his shoulder.

"Just make sure you read this information pack over the next few days," she ordered, handing the boy a datastick. "I'll give the rest of you your own ones, which will include Padawan Kenobi's adjusted meal plan, when I meet up with you later."

General Skywalker nodded at the blue Twi'lek. "Yes, Master Che."

And with that, they all exited (retreated from) the gardens, the commander ducking his head against the healer's accusing stare, which followed him all the way out.

As they walked along, the commander retreated further into himself, and it wasn't hard to understand why. Stares and whispers followed them through the hallways. General Skywalker glared at particularly unsubtle gawkers whilst Kix and Rex stuck close to the kid's side, even as he drew his wings around him protectively.

As they got closer to the Refractory, General Skywalker leant into the kid.

"You should probably grab your favourites," he murmured with a mischievous smile that Rex hadn't seen in months. "I have a feeling the diet plan Healer Che made is going to be pretty strict."

The commander frowned, his nose wrinkling briefly before his features cleared and he nodded seriously. "Yes, Master."

Rex had eaten at the Jedi Temple a few times before. None of the Jedi seemed bothered by having clones take meals with them, even though he knew that the Jedi Council had gone out of their way to ensure that the Mess Hall down at the Barracks was stocked with a varied range of food that contrasted greatly with the bland rations they often consumed whilst on missions. So, he knew how to navigate the space and quickly made his way to the small table that the general had commandeered for them.

The kid took several more minutes before he returned to the table, his plate filled with a mixture of fruits and pastries whilst he carried a mug full to the brim with steaming liquid in his other hand.

"What do you have there?" General Skywalker asked, gesturing to the drink.

The kid pulled the mug to his chest.

"It's tea, Master," he murmured, taking a long sip.

"You actually like the stuff?" General Skywalker questioned with a wrinkled nose. "Qui-Gon's obsessed with it."

The kid reddened as his grip tightened around the mug. "I… quite enjoy it."

Rex quirked a smile at him. "Don't worry, Commander. I've seen General Skywalker eat bugs, so don't let him judge any of your food decisions."

The general huffed at him, but tucked into his food since he didn't have a suitable retort. Rex smirked and turned his attention to his own food, tucking into it with enthusiasm. It was the first proper meal he'd had in months.

The flying seemed to have finally have kickstarted the kid's appetite though he still left a bit of food on his plate, seeming more intent on gulping his tea down. General Skywalker noticed this as well and shot the kid a small, reassuring smile. They didn't want a repeat of that one lunch where the kid had obviously choked down his food and then looked a little green after for the rest of the day.

"Why don't we stop by the quartermaster before we have to go off to Master Che?" General Skywalker suggested and they all nodded.

Stitch had done his best to modify the kid's wardrobe but the robes still hung a little awkwardly on his frame.

The commander, as usual, submitted willingly to any suggestion, keeping his eyes lowered as they walked out so that he didn't catch starers directly in the eye.

They were only a few steps out of the refractory when a cry of 'Obi!' rang through the hall just before the commander was stumbling to the side, his wings flailing out from his body and accidentally catching Rex in the stomach. He grunted and shifted back but didn't double over. Instead, his body automatically tensed, ready for an attack.

When the commander finally steadied himself, Rex saw that he had not, in fact, been attacked,. At least, not with a technique that Rex recognised. A small Mon Calamari girl had her arms wrapped around the commander's neck.

The commander's wings stilled and his body tensed for a second before he melted into the embrace.

"Bant," the boy breathed as his wings encircled her.

The girl's voice was muffled as she exclaimed, "You're back!"

They stayed like that for a few seconds before the commander jerked his wings back and folded them back up as he and the girl released each other. Both of them were blushing lightly and the Mon Calamari ducked her head in embarrassment.

The commander straightened his posture into the perfect one that he always assumed when he was talking to someone.

"Apologies, Master, Captain, Kix," the kid said with a nod. "This is my friend, Initiate Bant Eerin."

"Actually, Obi-Wan," the girl murmured her eyes darting to the adults in front of her before she focused on the commander. "I'm a padawan now."

Commander Kenobi froze, his face draining of colour.

"Oh."

He appeared to remember himself a second later as he turned to look at his friend, a small, tight smile on his face.

"Congratulations, Bant," he said, his voice warm even as his wings began to rub slightly against each other in a way that Rex had come to realise meant he was at his most anxious or upset. "Who is your master?"

The girl - Commander Eerin - grinned at Kenobi. "Actually, it was Master Vokara! I asked her not to mention it until I got a chance to tell you."

Commander Kenobi's shoulders lowered slightly and his wings relaxed.

"That's amazing, Bant," he said, his grin widening into something genuine.

"I'm actually late. I take lunch with her in the Healing Halls, but I get held back in astronavigation. Master Randal assigned me extra homework."

Commander Kenobi wrinkled his nose which prompted Commander Eerin to roll her eyes.

"Don't act as if you weren't the one who _asked_ for extra homework after you flopped that test last year. Now it's Master Randal's go-to punishment if someone's grades dip. So, really, this is your fault."

Commander Kenobi glanced at the general, his wings twitching before he turned his attention back to his friend.

"Well, then. I apologise."

Commander Eerin huffed. "It's no fun when you don't rise to the bait, Obi."

Commander Kenobi's lips twitched and Commander Eerin sighed.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Obi. I heard you guys have shore leave for a week. One of the perks of being Master Che's padawan is I know how long everyone's temple leave is - barring emergency missions that is."

Commander Kenobi leaned in for another hug.

"Do you know who else is here then?" he asked as he pulled away.

"Garen got in this morning but he won't be free for at least the rest of the day. Master Reyne has him on homework catch-up for the rest of the day. They leave in four days so he wants to meet us tomorrow after lunch."

Commander Kenobi nodded. "I will see you then."

Then, he cut a glance at General Skywalker. "Only if Master Anakin allows it, of course."

The general took a second to respond, but nodded. "That's fine, Obi-Wan. You can go."

Commander Kenobi gave a small smile and then nodded. "Thank you, master."

Commander Eerin bowed at them. "Goodbye Master Skywalker, Captain, trooper."

She grinned and gave the commander a small shove. "Bye Obi."

And with that, she was running off towards the halls of healing.

It was Commander Kenobi who had to break the silence after she left. "You said something about going to the quatermaster?"

General Skywalker nodded. "I did. Then we'll head off to Master Che. And you can have the afternoon off."

The commander nodded. "I need to convene with my teachers about my work."

General Skywalker pressed his lips together but didn’t answer.

\----

By the time dinner came around, Rex was exhausted. He'd spent the afternoon cycling between reading, getting lectured at by Master Che and helping approve the various modifications that needed to be done to the ship to help accommodate the commander's wings.

His head was swimming with the wall of information he had consumed. Rex knew the others were feeling it too from the way that Kix was massaging his temples and General Skywalker was blinking blankly as they approached the Refractory.

"Is the commander already here?" Kix asked, glancing sideways and General Skywalker shook the tiredness from his head before he pursed his lips in concentration.

"No, he isn't," the Jedi answered after a few seconds.

Less than a full year ago, Rex would have been amazed by the certainty in his voice, but now, he just nodded, unfazed.

Kix, who had spent a lot less time with the general, still widened his eyes, impressed. "Can you use your - er - bond to call him?"

General Skywalker frowned in concentration but shook his head quickly after. "He's too far away. Our bond still needs a lot of time to strengthen, especially if I want to project intention over any great distance. I was barely there with Snips before she -"

They all stiffened as General Skywalker broke off, and Rex saw his own flash of anger mirrored in the brief glower that overtook both the general's and Kix's face. His anger, however, was quickly extinguished by shame and guilt. None of them could meet each other's eyes.

"I'll comm him," General Skywalker muttered, punching a button on his wrist.

A second later, the comm chirped and the kid's voice was floating through it.

"Sorry Gener - Master. Sorry Master, I lost track of time. I can get to the Refractory in five minutes."

"It's fine, padawan. Don't rush. We'll get your food for you, so just meet us at the table."

"Yes Master."

With that, the comm chirped off. They all shared a loaded gaze before they walked inside.

General Skywalker glanced down at the piece of flimsi he had in his eyes and then grimaced.

"I'll go put this together," he said, pointing at the strict instructions Master Che had written detailing what the commander's dinner would be for the night.

"I'll bet you four chocolate bars that the kid runs," Rex murmured as they both grabbed their trays.

Kix glanced at Rex sharply the stormy frown that had been on his face smoothing.

"I'll take that," he said quickly. "There's no way the commander's going to actually _run_ through corridors. Not where someone else could see."

"I'm betting he's farther than a five minute walk away," Rex countered. "He'd run if that meant fulfilling the general's orders, no matter who's see him."

Kiz scowled. "Kark. Your kriffing right, vod."

Rex smirked, internally satisfied that he'd successfully distracted his vod from the spiral of guilt that he knew was consuming him. Kix could really get in his own head if someone didn't stop him. Not that they didn't have something to feel guilty about. But it wouldn't do to accidentally project an emotion with this many Jedi around.

Even if Ahsoka had once said that the only Force ability that General Skywalker was bad at was reading emotions. General Skywalker was very powerful. Even Rex knew that. It was a reason he always kept the shields up that Cody had showed him how to build in his mind, a trick that his ori'vod had learnt from Fett himself and grudgingly taught to the others. Cody hated everything to do with Fett, so if he thought teaching Rex something that reminded him so strongly of their progenitor, Rex knew it was useful. And it had been.

He'd have to teach some of the vod outside the ARCs to do it when he got time.

Maybe he could get the commander's help and drag the kid away from the paperwork every once in a while. Rex swore that Ahsoka never used to do that much work.

Commander Kenobi got to their table six and a half minutes after he'd commed General Skywalker, arriving just as General Skywalker put both their plates down. He was breathing heavily.

Rex had to remind himself not to smirk since he wasn't wearing his bucket.

The kid glanced down at his plate, which was filled mostly with meat and fish and composed himself, his wings drooping slightly.

"I know, Obi-Wan," General Skywalker said, patting the kid on the shoulder. "But Master Che's meal plan is very strict, especially when you're in the temple."

The kid nodded and sat down, silently digging into his food.

"How was your afternoon, padawan?" General Skywalker asked, obviously taking General Che's advice to reach out to heart.

Commander Kenobi tensed slight before he glanced up from where he had been slowly making his way through the pink fish he was tucking into.

"Oh, ah, very good master. I managed to meet with all my teachers and I read through the information pack that Master Che gave me."

Rex frowned. "You finished it?"

That thing had a lot of information in it. Rex knew it was going to take him at the rest of his shore leave to get through, as he would have to read it in between his duties.

The kid ducked his head. "No, I didn't. But I almost have!"

General Skywalker frowned. "Did you take a break?"

The commander's eyes were trained on his plate. "I went to the archives, Master."

"So, no," General Skywalker said shortly.

"I like the archives," the kid murmured before he flinched.

"Apologies, Master. I have always struggled with my holding my tongue."

General Skywalker blinked at his padawan balefully before he figured out how to respond.

"Then we're perfect for each other, Obi-Wan. I'm not exactly the best at keeping my mouth shut."

Rex held back a snort.

That was an understatement if he'd ever heard one in his admittedly short life. 

When they finished, all of them eating slower to accommodate the commander (Master Che had pointed out that he would become self-conscious if he had to eat alone), they all stood up from their backless chairs.

"Well, then, why don't we go up to our new room and I can preen your wings before we go to bed?" the general asked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this took a while. I've had a chaotic week. 
> 
> Again, sorry for any mistakes or if the flow is out. I'm posting this very late at night and I'm very tired.

**Author's Note:**

> My tumblr is reydjarinkenobi
> 
> Here is a link: https://reydjarinkenobi.tumblr.com/
> 
> If you want to send me asks with prompts or talk to me in my messages feel free to. Seriously, this is an open and enthusiastic invitation.


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